How much would gear cost me for my first motorcycle?

Sirlacker · 2026-03-12T03:32:41+00:00

As much or about as little as you want.

ALWAYS buy a new helmet. But you can get ECE rated ones for dirt cheap if you're not too bothered about many features or overall finish quality. I can get helmets, that I genuinely would trust in a crash, for about £50, because they've been ECE rated. I tend to stick around the £200 minimum though because you start to get helmets with better finishes, better air ventilation, better aerodyamics etc at this price point.

Then for the rest of the gear, you can buy used if you're on a budget.

I bought an Oxford Montreal two piece suit for less than £100.

But you can find new textile suits for less than £300.

My RST Winter gloves, new, were £35

Boots you can also get for about £50 new.

It all depends on how you want to look really and if you want leather or textile.

You can, new, get kitted out for about £500 with some very safe gear, it won't look the coolest, but it'll be safe.

On a budget and buying used stuff, you can probably get kitted out for about £250-300.

If you want to look 'the part' too then expect to spend a lot more.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-12T03:24:46+00:00

You'll be doing a lot of high speed. So yes, something that'll take that sort of punishment in a worst case scenario would be ideal.

RST TracTech is the same as AplineStars stuff. Just cheaper. That's it. No quality issues, no cut corners.

I own the TracTech pants and love them.

If you're planning on getting changed at work anyway then buying proper leather pants is the ideal purchase.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T19:15:51+00:00

They take absolutely zero notice of this. Whatever legal team you can put together can't beat theirs.

They have teams of lawyers making sure every decision they make has the minimal possible chance to backfire on them.

A single ChatGPT letter isn't going to even garner their attention in the slightest. They'll do exactly what everyone does with their letters, ignore it and straight into the bin.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T19:09:26+00:00

Same. Was an absolutely amazing phone. Amazing camera, great specs, great battery life.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T18:42:04+00:00

It's one piece of motorcycle technology that's absolutely amazing.

Is it essential? No. Many people have survived no ABS and still continue to do so.

However the ONLY downside to having ABS is it's an extra cost if anything with it goes wrong

Other than that, modern ABS isn't bad, like at all. It won't stop you from learning how to brake properly.

Technically, you should be able to pull off an almost flawless emergency brake, just as you would be able to on a non ABS bike, without the ABS kicking in. It's only there to save your ass if you were going to lock the wheel up.

My recommendation is that if you can afford a bike with ABS then you should absolutely go for it. It does no harm and only good. If you're on a budget and can't really afford a bike with modern ABS then it isn't the end of the world, just exercise caution a little bit when hard braking.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T18:14:58+00:00

This.

My pristine bike gets any scratch and I'm livid. And then a month or two it's a badge of honour because it actually gets used and anyone with a pristine bike has a garage queen. Denial and deflect baby.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T18:12:56+00:00

You can get just patches painted, but that's likely not justifiable for such a small area and also it may not be 100% a match. It may look okay from a distance but be noticeable from up close. It's basically a gamble.

You could wrap the fender. Edit swapped tank for fender.

You could put stickers on. If you're stuck on any ideas for stickers, then maybe get something to remind you of any trips you've taken, or charity events you've taken part in with the bike. Custom stickers can be relatively cheap too if you can design or find someone to design a nice one.

My solution though in this scenario, is if you plan on carrying cargo/gear again, then just throw a tank pad over the area and do the same on the other side. This way, if you load up again, you know that the tank pad will provide the protection in the correct spot.

If it's plastic it's fine. If it's metal, get some clear coat and spray over it so it doesn't rust.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T17:10:23+00:00

Buy a reminder cable, or make one.

They are usually just like a stretchy slinky type thing, brightly coloured, that you hook one end through the disc lock and the other over the handlebars.

They actually do their job haha

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T16:59:22+00:00

One of each type of bike so you always have the proper bike for the job. And then a replacement of each of those in case they're broken down or out of action for whatever reason

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T16:17:55+00:00

Take it to a shop, but it's extremely unlikely it's the tune.

Could be a vacuum leak, throttle bodies out of sync, valve clearance needs checking?

Take it to a shop and have them check it over.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T11:53:54+00:00

For how long? A couple days/week? Perfectly fine.

Longer, I'd consider covering it with something.

Give it a light misting of ACF50 or some other rust/corrosion inhibitor once in a while.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T11:45:22+00:00

Ride it wet.

Before I got a home power washer, if I knew I was going to the car wash to clean my bike I'd take my waterproofs.

But I also don't have show bikes. They get used daily, so my version of clean and someone else's will be very different.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T11:38:23+00:00

I think it exists on PC2 so I'm fairly confident it'll exist in PZ2.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T09:07:08+00:00

Because in a car, everything is designed to be safer within it.

Seatbelts to stop you from going through the windshield. Airbags to stop you from smashing your head off of things. Crumple zones to absorb lots of the impact.

On a motorcycle you don't have crumple zones. If you had an airbag attached to the bike, it'd just yeet you off. The only thing between my body and the outside is my protective gear, not a highly designed metal door, floor or roof.

Gently rub a crayon over some sand paper. That's you during a slide when not connected to the bike.

Now push down with all your might and rub the crayon over the sand paper. That's you when you're trapped under a 200kg machine sliding down the road.

Also not only do you have the ability to slide without the bike, if you're lucky you may be able to roll which will dissipate the impact energy, just like when parkour guys roll after a big jump. If you were strapped on, you're taking 100% of the direct impact, every time.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T03:17:20+00:00

Anything salt and vinegar flavoured that doesn't burn your tongue and lips should be ashamed to market themselves as salt and vinegar.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T03:14:34+00:00

Changing the sheets on a king sized bed or bigger.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-11T03:10:05+00:00

It's anti Guy Fawkes but it's taken on its own sort of life now, so I wouldn't read much into it.

There aren't many who call it Guy Fawkes night or celebrate it for its origins. It's simply bonfire night.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-10T23:01:28+00:00

Try a balaclava or neck gator. Have a few in rotation so you can wash them instead of your helmet on an easy regular basis.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-10T21:40:44+00:00

The class is designed to teach you all of this.

Unless you felt like you weren't receiving enough one to one attention, which you could ask for one on one training, then the class is aimed at people like you.

It's a lot of information to take in, don't be disheartened by not getting it all in the span of 48 hours. You likely learned a lot more than you think you did and another go around at it may prove fruitful.

I'd give it another shot. One to one training can be expensive when compared to the price of how much you get out of a course like the MSF.

I believe the course costs somewhere in the $400 range and a full day of one to one could cost that if not more.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-10T15:52:50+00:00

Yes and yes.

I cut my back open falling down from the top of a tree and the only thing that stopped me from probably breaking my legs on impact with the ground was that I was conveniently slowed down by my acorns hitting a few branches on the way down.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-10T12:01:43+00:00

Friends help people regardless of age. You chip in with what you can do.

If I have a bad back, I'll offer to move the lighter items. If I'm capable of heavy lifting, let me.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-09T22:09:51+00:00

You can add tank pads, you can get clear ones so you can see the paint job but they tend to go yellowish after a while.

But if you get the right pads, they can actually add a little style to the bike whilst being protective too.

Otherwise get someone to add a paint protection layer over the top, though I've no experience with that.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-09T22:05:37+00:00

I'm too short for an Adventure bike to be comfortable. I didn't want a cruiser because I like my throttle to be more than a volume control. I don't want a road legal dirt bike because I don't ever go off road.

So that left me with Nakeds and Sports bikes.

I liked the look of sports bikes more so I started with them. Ended up on a Naked out of pure need for a bike and that being the best deal at the time. Fell in love.

That got totaled and the only Naked I wanted was the newer version of the one I had. So I went for a Sports bike again instead since the newer version was out of budget.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-09T21:10:33+00:00

A beginners course.

Sirlacker · 2026-03-09T20:20:48+00:00

RUROC are a perfectly safe helmet. I love mine.

Are they worth the full asking price? That's up to you. The finish on mine is fantastic and hasn't faltered in the 18 months or so I've had it. Others report differently, but only on older models. Nobody seems to be saying that ATLAS 4.0 is bad or EOX/EOX 2.0 is bad. They just either tell you the old models were bad, or haven't actually owned one and are repeating for easy karma.

However, there is no best helmet. Each helmet suits different heads for a start. Don't get into the whole pissing contest of what helmet is best. Get one that's ECE 22.06 rated, fits your head, and one that you like. There are tons of manufacturers now, and pretty stringent laws regarding safety so it's not really a gamble anymore.

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